Trevor Rhone

Trevor Rhone
Name	Trevor Rhone
Birth date	1940-10-24
Birth place	Chapelton, Clarendon Parish, Jamaica
Death date	2009-09-21
Death place	Kingston, Jamaica
Occupation	Playwright, Screenwriter, Novelist, Actor
Notable works	Smile Orange, The Harder They Come (screenplay), Two Can Play

Trevor Rhone was a Jamaican playwright, screenwriter, novelist, and actor whose work shaped Caribbean theatre and film. He collaborated with regional artists, cultural institutions, and international festivals to bring Jamaican vernacular and social critique to stages and screens in the Caribbean, Europe, and North America. Rhone's writing engaged with postcolonial identities, Rastafari discourse, and urban life, influencing contemporaries across literature, theatre, and cinema.

Early life and education

Born in Chapelton, Clarendon Parish, Rhone grew up in a milieu connected to Jamaica and West Indies cultural currents, with influences from Marcus Garvey, Alexander Bustamante, and Nanny of the Maroons traditions evident in community storytelling. He attended local schools influenced by curricula associated with British Empire legacies and later pursued training that brought him into contact with theatrical movements linked to Royal National Theatre practices and Caribbean companies such as the Little Theatre Movement (Jamaica). Early encounters with radio programmes like those on Jamaica Broadcasting Corporation and tours by visiting troupes from Trinidad and Tobago and Britain helped shape his dramatic sensibility.

Career

Rhone co-founded and worked with theatre collectives, collaborating with groups connected to Barn Theatre (Jamaica), Trench Town ensembles, and touring companies associated with Commonwealth cultural exchanges. He wrote plays and screenplays produced at venues including the National Theatre (London), regional festivals such as the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, and film circuits connected to Caribbean Film Festival initiatives. Rhone partnered with filmmakers, actors, and producers who had ties to Pereira Films, Island Records, and figures associated with Jimmy Cliff, Bob Marley, and directors from Guyana and Barbados. His screenwriting work brought him into collaboration with international distributors that exhibited at venues like Cannes Film Festival and screenings supported by institutions such as the British Film Institute.

Major works

Rhone authored stage works that became staples of Caribbean repertory, including titles staged by companies linked to University of the West Indies (UWI), Mango Theatre Company, and touring ensembles that performed at the Caribbean Festival of Arts (Carifesta). His best-known screenplay, associated with a film that propelled Reggae into global cinema, earned attention alongside films by Perry Henzell and produced conversations in outlets connected to the British Council. Notable plays were published and staged in anthologies circulated by presses related to Heinemann, Longman, and university presses at University of Toronto Press. Collaborators on productions included actors and directors with associations to Paul Robeson, Derek Walcott, and regional dramatists from Trinidad and Tobago and Barbados.

Themes and style

Rhone's work explored postcolonial identity alongside local idioms, drawing on narrative modes related to Oral tradition (literature), Calypso, and Ska rhythms while engaging with social scenes reminiscent of Kingston neighborhoods and rural parishes like Clarendon Parish. He employed Jamaican patois and theatrical realism linked to methods practiced at conservatories such as Royal Central School of Speech and Drama and universities including University of the West Indies, juxtaposing comic elements with critiques that resonated with audiences familiar with the legacies of Slavery in the Caribbean, Indentureship, and political movements inspired by Marcus Garvey and Norman Manley. His dramaturgy intersected with themes in the work of contemporaries like V.S. Naipaul, Derek Walcott, and Wilson Harris while aligning with filmic realism seen in productions associated with Third Cinema movements.

Awards and recognition

Rhone received honours from cultural institutions affiliated with Jamaica Cultural Development Commission and recognition from regional bodies such as Caribbean Community (CARICOM). His plays and screenplays were awarded prizes in competitions run by entities like the BBC and showcased at festivals including the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and Caribbean showcases supported by the British Council and UNESCO. He was celebrated alongside Caribbean literary and theatrical figures such as Derek Walcott, Linton Kwesi Johnson, and V.S. Naipaul in retrospectives and institutional commemorations organized by universities like the University of the West Indies and arts councils in Kingston and London.

Personal life and legacy

Rhone's personal associations included collaborations with artists linked to Island Records, actors who worked with Perry Henzell and Jimmy Cliff, and dramatists connected to the Little Theatre Movement (Jamaica). After his death in Kingston he was commemorated by cultural organizations including the Institute of Jamaica and the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission, and his texts remain in curricula at institutions such as the University of the West Indies, University of Toronto, and drama schools in London. His influence is cited by playwrights and filmmakers across the Caribbean and the diaspora, informing contemporary practitioners who engage with themes resonant with audiences in Caribbean Festival of Arts (Carifesta), Notting Hill Carnival, and academic programmes in Caribbean studies.

Category:Jamaican dramatists and playwrights Category:1940 births Category:2009 deaths